Over thinking

I recently came across an article on Huffington Post about the ramifications of over thinking and I think the author is right on. As a woman who lives life with the motto that “it is better to regret doing something than not doing something,” over thinking is not an offense I am frequently guilty of committing. How about you?

The paralysis of over thinking (how about OT for our purposes?) steals time from so many. All that wondering, the what ifs, the fear of making an uncorrectable mistake, leads to only one thing for certain – time is lost never to be regained. I don’t know that being imprudent is the answer, but maybe it’s time to have a bit more confidence in ourselves and take some action.

While I don’t consider myself to be reckless in the least, (despite anything you might hear to contradict that) I do at times act with a certain impulsiveness. A prime example of this tendency was my decision, many years ago, to take a personal bank loan (for $1000, which then seemed like a very large amount of money) to travel to Europe with 6 friends. The trip was organized last-minute and I was weeks away from relocating to Albany to finally start college. On paper, it probably didn’t make much sense for me take on debt for a vacation, but I knew that the opportunity to spend that time with my best friends experiencing London and Amsterdam, wasn’t something that was going to ever happen again. I went and it was one of the best trips I ever had – no regrets.

Even if things don’t always work out, if the results are not quite what one expected or hoped for, there is almost always another action which can be taken to reach a desired goal. Taking a deep breath, and a step in the direction you’re hoping to travel, seems a natural way to get closer to your ultimate destination.

What are you more inclined to be culpable of – over thinking or audaciously taking action?